1997 Mazda 626 LX from North America - Comments

20th Sep 2008, 17:15

I guess I should have gotten the standard. My automatic is a piece of crap too. 1997 626's need to be piled up and burned. My tranny is on the fritz; it's doing the rpm rev and slam, rev and slam. It seems cornering aggravates it. I'm trying to replace at filter and fluid today, and now I can't locate the filter. I guess it's buried deep in the tranny somewhere.

8th Oct 2008, 13:38

I've had the 1997 Mazda 626 LX since 1998. It is 10 years old and the transmission has the same as the above issues. However, I have been manually shifting gears. I start in 1st then 2nd and drive. Each time I stop, I put it back to 1st and start again. My car just made 70,000 miles. I've really taken care of the preventive maintenance on this car, so I pray that the transmission doesn't completely die on me.

10th Oct 2008, 17:59

I also have a 1997 Mazda 626 with a auto trans. 3 words for it... Piece of crap!!! My transmission went out in mine with only 115,000 miles on the car. I can't believe that Mazda never did a recall on these auto transmissions. I was reading a comment also posted on here saying something along the lines of "it's a 10 year old car, you're expecting too much" but the truth of the matter is there is no reason for this many auto transmissions to go out under 120,000 miles without a recall. Maybe, Mazda should suffer their loss and make things right with their customer's. But instead they just point fingers everywhere else, saying that it's a Ford problem because they built the trans. The fact of the matter is it's Mazda's name on the cars and it was Mazda's choice to put them in their cars. This will be the last Mazda I buy due to this despicable car.

14th Nov 2008, 22:03

Yeah I have a 98 626 LX... Beat it every day 40 miles commute. It has 103K and the tranny blew. I have always changed some of the oil... There is really no way to get to the fluid (design stupidity) I bought a device that has a tube that you feed down the dip stick, and suck out the fluid. I believe it is a Ford tranny.

Up to now though the car has been reliable. I will fix the tranny, do the timing belt and hope to get 40k more.

3rd Dec 2008, 18:07

I have owned my Mazda 626 LX for 3 years now, and have put more than 100, 000km on it myself so far, it has a total of 292, 000 km on it. The transmission is slipping, and isn't going into gear properly, and the OD Off light flashes, this car has had a good run, and I plan on getting it fixed after reading what I have read here, on this webpage. I hope to see it continue to run for a few hundred thousand more km. I went to see a Mazda dealership a couple years ago, and they told me that the only thing that is wrong with this make and model is that the engine runs forever, this car is still worth a fair amount, its worth putting the money into.

8th Apr 2009, 11:33

I have a 1997 Mazda 626 LX Automatic. I bought it 3 years old in 2000 with 32,000 miles on it.

As soon as a few days after I bought the car, the check engine light went on and has been on ever since.

I was told it was the catalytic converter, O2 sensor, etc. Had those parts replaced, light went away only to return shortly. I have pretty much given up on the thing.

I have started to deal with transmission problems with the car. If I drive on the highway at a steady speed, the RPM gauge goes up and down and the car bucks as if it's trying to switch gears but can't. My mechanic couldn't seem to find what the problem was, but I have spoken to another mechanic and family members and they all seem to think the transmission is on its way out.

This car has been decent to me for the last 9 years; I've put 100,000 miles on it since I bought it and have had to do the basic repairs, and have kept up with oil changes and did a recent tune-up hoping that would fix the problems I'm having with the bucking motion.

After reading everyone else's problems and seeing that they are pretty much similar to mine, I really think Mazda should have done something to help out their consumers. I will never again buy a Mazda or any other American made car. I think I'll be looking into Honda, Nissan and Acura for my next vehicle.

14th May 2009, 14:28

I have a 1998 Mazda 626 LX automatic. I have had it six years. EGR valve and transmission problems are a norm for me. I think I need a water pump now because the engine runs hot, but my temperature gauge doesn't change. My check engine light has been on since I purchased the car. My overdrive off light has started flashing whenever my transmission gets too hot.

The funny thing is I love this Mazda very much. I paid $4500 for it. It has cost me so much money, but she is still hanging in there.

Oh yeah, there is an oil leak but I cannot seem to find out where it is going. Can anyone help???

31st May 2009, 22:16

My Mazda's engine light is always on. Each year when I have to go to emissions I disconnect the battery the night before going, then reconnect, it's a 10-15 minute drive so that gives it time to cycle through the gears a few times, and then it passes emissions no problem. By end of the day the light is back on, but at least it gets through emissions. Otherwise no problems.

31st Aug 2009, 19:35

Does anyone know how many miles I can get out of the clutch on this 1997 Mazda 626? It is the same one that has been in it since new. I have 130000 on it and it still is not slipping, but sometimes the clutch pedal doesn't come all the way up. It like sticks the last inch. Any help, I would be grateful.

1st Sep 2009, 11:13

Can't tell you how many miles you get out of a clutch, because it depends on how often you shift, and whether you have any clutch damaging driving habits. I would first replace the hydraulic fluid to see if that fixes the problem. If not, it could be a master/ slave cylinder issue or rust and dirt in the pedal pivot.

10th Oct 2009, 22:33

I just recently purchased a few months ago the 1997 Mazda 626 LX and have the check engine light on and the shaking, etc. I sat down today and looked at it, and am starting with the basics. Changing the oil and transmission fluid and filters. However I don't have the owners manual and don't know what the TYPE of TRANSMISSION FLUID that it says to use in the owners manual. If someone could please tell me the recommended fluids for this vehicle, that would be greatly appreciated. I'll let you know after I've torn it apart if I find out how to fix our similar dilemmas VR.